Walter's White Bread

I made homemade sandwich bread in January and haven't bought a loaf of bread since. The boys LOVE homemade bread so I decided to poke around online to see if I could find another bread recipe. I recently found King Arthur Flour's (KAF) site. WOW! They post some wicked good recipes! I baked white bread and it turned out great. I'm quite impressed with how my loaf turned out. If you look at the pictures of my loaves from my honey wheat bread post, you can see that I'm finally making a smooth-top bread. I am learning! :)

This bread is called "Walter Sands' White Bread" and I wondered, "Who the heck is Walter?" He was the Owner and President of King Arthur Flour from '43-'68 and he created this bread recipe. KAF says it's "sandwich bread fit for the king" so I had to try it. Lemme tell ya...Walter made a terrific bread! 

Nice and smooth.

With a shimmery, buttery top, this is my best looking loaf to date. :)

Perfect slices.

Walter Sands' White Bread

Yield: 1 loaf

Ingredients:

• 1 c + 2 tablespoons to 1 1/4 c lukewarm water (use the lesser amt in summer/humid climates and the greater amt in winter/drier climates)
• 1 heaping tablespoon honey
• 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 1 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbs soft butter
• 4 c flour
• 1/2 c nonfat dry milk granules

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients in stand mixer bowl using flat paddle. Scrap sides as necessary. Then knead dough for 10 minutes using dough hook till a ball forms. In the same stand mixer bowl, lift out dough ball and lightly oil the bowl. Roll dough around in the oil then cover bowl with a damp towel. Allow dough to double in size for 60-90 mins in warm area free of drafts. Butter the loaf pan and set aside.
2. Once dough has risen, roll dough into a thick, rectangular shape on a Roul'Pat. Roll dough into tight log the same length as the loaf pan you're using.
3. Place rolled dough into loaf pan with seam-side down, cover again with damp towel and let it rise 1 - 1 1/2" over loaf pan, about 60 mins. During last 15 mins of rising, preheat oven to 350F.
4. When dough is ready, bake for about 20 minutes. If it's too brown on top after 20 mins, place foil over bread and bake for another 10 mins, for a total of 30 mins. The temperature of the bread should read between 195 - 200F.
5. Turn loaf onto wire rack immediately. Spread butter over top of bread using the stick of butter. Much easier than using a pat of butter that would slip off and make a mess. :) 
6. Allow bread to cool completely before slicing. ENJOY!

Source: King Arthur Flour